The USS Janeway reports on the DMA. The DMA suddenly disappears.

Stamets reports the disappearance from his monitoring station on Discovery. Reno is there as well. The DMA reappears 4.2 sec later, a thousand lightyears away.

Debriefing with Book, Burnham, and Saru, they come to the conclusion the DMA was created by someone.

The team reports to Vance, informing him the DMA is headed towards an inhabited planet, Radvik-5, that will need to be evacuated of their Akaali population. Burnham will lead the effort.

Vance assigns Ruon Tarka to the Discovery team to solve the DMA. Stamets is resistant. Vance is insistent.

Radvik-5 has 1206 inhabitants in need of evacuation. Burnham makes contact with the magistrate. Saru reports six life signs that are not at the evacuation point. The magistrate refers to them as "The Examples," a group of prisoners, now stuck in the prison because all prison staff have fled.

Burnham and Book plan to rescue the prisoners while Commander Rhys leads the evacuation team.

Stamets and Culber discuss Tarka, who hasn't been communicative with Stamets. Stamets cautions Culber about overworking himself.

Tarka arrives on the bridge. He's eager to get started.

Burnham and Book enter the prison's shielded area, taking them out of transporter and comms range. They reminisce about jobs they worked before Discovery arrived in the 32nd century. They spot a beetle that is acting strangely. Turns out to be a landmine.

On Discovery, Tarka is impatient with Stamets and Saru. He demonstrates his theory of the DMA with mashed potatoes and a pea. He proposes creating a working model of the DMA controller. Saru decides to supervise this project.

On Radvik-5, Burnham deactivates the attack beetles. They find the Examples who are skeptical of their intentions. They want a guarantee that they won't be imprisoned again.

Culber finds Dr. Kovich waiting in his office. He tries to reschedule but Kovich insists on getting to the issue. Culber shares his own fear and uncertainty. Kovich is blunt in his analysis and recommendations.

Burnham and Book bring down the prisoners' containment fields. The prisoners would rather risk the DMA than remain in custody.

The team in Engineering attempts the working model Tarka proposed. They need more power which requires a risky option. Tarka challenges Saru to be a risk-taker. Stamets vouches for the experimental risk.

Burnham finds a way to grant the Examples asylum. When they head out, they trigger another prison system, trapping them. On Book's suggestion, Burnham reactivates the beetles to blow open the prison.

On Discovery, the experiment threatens to burst its containment field. Saru shuts it down to Tarka's ire.

Burnham and her group get back into range. One prisoner, Felix, insists on staying. Burnham respects his agency but Book doesn't want to let him potentially commit suicide.

Burnham opens a channel to Felix to inform him that the DMA will hit Radvik-5. Felix confesses his crime. He gives Burnham his victim's name before they lose communication and the DMA destroys the asteroid.

Discovery jumps away from the site.

The magistrate arrives and demands the Examples be held in the brig. Burnham denies his demands.

Culber and Stamets discuss their day.

On her way to return Felix's item to the child of his victim, Burnham discovers that Zora, the ship's computer, has recently developed the ability to feel emotions. Burnham is able to return the legacy orb to the woman who is pregnant with her own child.

Tarka finds Book in the crew lounge where he's drinking. Tarka points out his experiment proved that the energy source of the real DMA is equivalent to a hyper-giant star.

Book notices a scar on the back of Tarka's neck.